This invention related generally to a fixing device for a motor vehicle seat, and more particularly to such a fixing device which comprises a support element for fixing a seat back to a side wall of the vehicle, and a hook element engageable with the support element, the hook element being mounted for pivotal movement on an upper portion of the seat back.
A known fixing device 10 is shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B for fixing the upper portion of a forwardly foldable seat back to the side wall of a motor vehicle so as to prevent the seat from being forwardly folded unintentionally. The fixing device comprises a support element 11 and a hook element 12 engageable therewith. The support element includes a base plate 13 fixedly mounted on a side wall 14 of the motor vehicle, and a U-shaped set part 15 secured to and extending horizontally from the base plate.
Hook element 12 has a hook part 16 which engages the forward leg of set part 15, an operative part 17 to facilitate manual pivoting of the hook element, and a pivot portion 18 having a hole 19 through which a fastener 21 extends for pivotally mounting hook element 12 to the upper portion of a seat back 21.
Thus, when the hook element is manually pivoted so that its hook part 16 engages set part 15 for fixing seat back 21 to side wall 14, and when an external load is applied to the seat back in the direction of the arrow of FIG. 1B, the seat back is caused to bend or distort to its phantom outline position such that hook element 12 slips off sideways from the set part with which it engages thereby causing the seat back to be overturned rearwardly.
In order to remedy such problems, means have been provided to reinforce the seat back itself so as to minimize its bending or distortion after being hooked in place. However, such a remedy may tend to affect the requirements for reducing the weight of the seat.